Offshore

ANR said that as a result of normal pigging operations from offshore Louisiana to its Patterson Compressor Station, it “has encountered an abnormally large quantity of liquids in the line,” which has shut down the station. Until the liquids issue has been resolved and Patterson is back online, ANR will not be scheduling any interruptible deliveries between Patterson and Eunice, LA until further notice.

Kerr-McGee Corp. and partner Ocean Energy Inc. have selected Technip Offshore Inc. to construct the world’s first cell spar for the development of the Red Hawk deepwater field in Garden Banks block 877 in the Gulf of Mexico. First production from the natural gas field with estimated proven reserves of more than 250 Bcf is expected in the second quarter of 2004. Located in 5,300 feet of water, Red Hawk will be Kerr-McGee’s deepest development to date. Kerr-McGee Oil & Gas Corp., a subsidiary of the Oklahoma City-based company, operates Red Hawk with 50% interest, and Ocean Energy holds the remaining 50%. Luke R. Corbett, Kerr-McGee CEO, said, “This new cell spar technology will allow us to capitalize on our deepwater prospects by reducing the reserve threshold needed for an economical platform development in deep waters.” The innovative cell spar, which is the third generation of spar technology, will have an initial daily production capacity of 120 MMcf, with ultimate capacity of 300 MMcf. It will measure 64 feet in diameter and 480 feet in length. The design includes seven tubes, each 20 feet in diameter, with a center tube surrounded by the other six tubes, all connected by structural steel. The deck will be 110 feet by 132 feet. Construction is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2002.

A day after confirming that a lateral leak near Matagorda Offshore Pipeline System (MOPS) Platform 703 had been repaired and an outage of the Matagorda 703/704/709 receipt point had ended last Saturday (see Daily GPI, Aug. 7), MOPS operator Northern Natural Gas reported Wednesday that a leak had been detected again on the lateral. Matagorda 703/704/709 was taken to zero flow again, affecting 22,000 MMBtu/d. The expected downtime is unknown, NNG said. NNG owner Dynegy did not respond to an inquiry about whether this was a new leak or a recurrence of the old one.

Repairs of a lateral leak (see Daily GPI, July 23) on Matagorda Offshore Pipeline System are expected to be complete by Friday, MOPS operator Northern Natural Gas said Tuesday morning. About 22,000 MMBtu/d is impacted by the shutdown of MOPS Platform 703.

Repairs of a lateral leak (see Daily GPI, July 23) on Matagorda Offshore Pipeline System are expected to be complete by Friday, MOPS operator Northern Natural Gas said Tuesday morning. About 22,000 MMBtu/d is impacted by the shutdown of MOPS Platform 703.

Matagorda Offshore Pipeline System (MOPS), operated by Northern Natural Gas, shut down Platform 703 Monday for unplanned maintenance after a leak was detected on the 16-inch lateral near the platform. The Matagorda 703/704/709 receipt point was taken to zero flow until further notice, affecting 22,000 MMBtu/d.

Matagorda Offshore Pipeline System (MOPS), operated by Northern Natural Gas, shut down Platform 703 Monday for unplanned maintenance after a leak was detected on the 16-inch lateral near the platform. The Matagorda 703/704/709 receipt point was taken to zero flow until further notice, affecting 22,000 MMBtu/d.

About 10 Tcf of gas stranded offshore Venezuela could be headed to the U.S. East Coast via liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker starting in 2007, according to a new partnership formed by Venezuelan state-owned oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), Royal Dutch/Shell Group and Mitsubishi Corp. The companies signed an agreement to spend $2.5 billion on a new LNG project on the Paria peninsula. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2005 and be completed two years later.

Senate repeal of the Commodity Futures Modernization Act (CFMA), which would subject trading of over-the-counter energy derivatives to greater regulatory oversight, “would rescind significant advances” that have been brought about by the 14-month-old law, and in the end could accelerate flight to overseas markets, warned the head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).